Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Out Of the Woods!

Lexi is obsessed with "Into the Woods." I mean, like "more-than-she-was-obsessed-with-Frozen" obsessed. It was one of the first movies that she attended in the theater and had a descriptive services headset. Descriptive services add a narrator to the movie who talks when there is no dialogue. The narrator describes what those of us with sight are able to see. It's a great service for the visually impaired and Lexi LOVES it! Prior to seeing the movie, Christi had given her the soundtrack CD, so Lex knew all of the songs and had already sung them hundreds of times before going to the theater. After she saw the movie, a sweet couple from our church congregation took her to a local high school production of the play. Now, in addition to the soundtrack, she owns two copies of the movie: a digital copy on Amazon that Christi got for her, and a DVD that Christi got for her after we realized the digital copy didn't have the descriptive services option. Lexi and Sophi sing the songs from this musical multiple times a day. At the top of their lungs. Over and over. It's a beautiful thing.

Despite all of this, I had not yet seen the movie. Christi impressed upon me the fact that it was very important to Lexi that I watch it with her. When I demurred, Christi impressed upon me the fact that my future happiness in my marital relationship was largely dependent on my watching it with Lexi. I saw the light. So one Sunday afternoon, Christi, Lexi, Sophi and I cuddled in our bed to watch Into the Woods. It was a painful experience. While watching Captain Kirk belt out 'Agony' was a bit of a fanboy fantasy, and while the songwriting was exceptional, the movie itself had a warped storyline and was waaaay too long. At the point in the movie where it looks like everyone is going to live happily ever after and I would be able to turn off the TV (and I was dozing off already), Christi turned to me and said, "that's the end of Act I." I totally thought she was joking, and once I realized it was true, I began to understand the true meaning of 'Agony!' [Side note: after finding the link to 'Agony' above, I have been playing the song while working on this post. Sure enough, like moths to a flame, there are now two darling little girls in my office ;)]

Of course I didn't let Lex and Soph know my true feelings. I talked about how fun the music was and how great the various characters were. Continuing with their love of this musical, these two little angels decided to put on their own production. On my way home from work the next evening I got a call from Christi. "Hurry back! Lexi and Sophi are putting on a production of Into the Woods for us and can't wait for you to get here." Barely able to contain my joy, I put the pedal to the medal and arrived just in time for curtain call. Jessica was invited to be the narrator, Sophi was Rapunzel and Lexi was every other role (except milky white, the cow, who was played by Molly). In the pictures below, notice Lexi's red cape and Sophi's Rapunzel hair (some kind of nylon stocking with a belt to extend it). Very clever costumes with no help from mom and dad.

And so their production began. We began to video. My attention span is not tremendously long. 5 minutes. 8 minutes. 12 minutes. 15 minutes. Finally I realized the truth. Having seen the movie just the day before, I was very familiar with the storyline, dialogue and songs. Suddenly I knew. I turned to Christi and said, "They are going to do the ENTIRE movie! Line for line!!!" Fortunately, despite her attention span being decidedly more 'kid-prodution-friendly' than mine, Christi knew it just wouldn't work for us to watch a full 2.5 hour musical that particular evening. She asked the girls to do two more of their favorite parts and then it would be time for dinner.

I love our girls! They did a fantastic job. I'm embedding a video below. It's 15 minutes long, so just skip around to a couple of scenes to see a bit of their creativity. Enjoy!

3 comments:

It's not trips to Disneyland or big, blow-out birthday parties that make good parents...it's moments like these! You are a great dad! I am very impressed with the nylon idea for long hair. I watched a few minutes of the video, but will wait to watch the whole thing until I've have a chance to see the movie. Which I still plan to do in spite of your scathing review. :)

HA HA HA! Jeremy, I feel your pain! I LOVE musicals. In fact, I am the Only one in the family that does. We rented Into the Woods today from redbox strictly because of your girls! I was so excited to bring it home. We popped it in and every male head whipped in my direction and wailed, "Mom! It's a musical!" I really had no idea. After 45 minutes of nobody watching it, we turned it off. This is one redbox we won't get fined for having it past the due date!

I have now watched the movie (well...I could only stand 37 minutes of the movie, then fast-forwarded throughout the rest to get the gist...painful!). But having seen what I saw, I can appreciate the girls' creativity and memorization. The entrance of Molly "Milky White" the cow had me laughing out loud, as did her chewing of the leash. The off-script interactions between the little actresses are great! Good job, girls!

When we fell in love 20 years ago, we started down a path that has been challenging, exhausting, and breathtakingly beautiful. Here we chronicle the blessings and stressings of parenting some pretty amazing children. We think they're the perfect travel companions as we look forward to the next fork in the road. Welcome to our journey.

Jeremy and Christianne

Taylor Jeremy--19

Parker Matthew--18

The red-headed social butterfly, he's our all-star athlete, top student, outdoor-loving, spunky second-born, with a heart of pure gold!

Jessica Anne "Jesi"--15

Our little princess with the big smile, Jesi loves fashion, friends, hanging with her siblings, and vacations. She sparkles!

Jacob Michael-- 6/8/2004

Little one of heavenly birth, born too soon to bloom on earth. You have taught us so much--we love you, Jacob!

Emily Anne "Emmy"--9/28/2005

Emily's exquisite little hands and feet have left their mark in this world. Her body was tiny, but her spirit enormous. We miss her!

Elizabeth Mei "Elli"--14

Elli's world may be dark, but she's the light of our lives! Lover of music, chocolate, and new toys, she fights a courageous battle with autism while bringing joy to all who know her!!

Gracelin Kate "Graci"--20

Showing true grace throughout her battles with heart disease and pulmonary hypertension, our Gracester is loved by everyone! She's smart, gorgeous, friendly, and has faith to move mountains!

Alexander Philip "Xander"--13

With a spunk and smile that could outmatch anyone's, our Xander has not let Cloves Syndrome get the best of him. He's a talented chef, a caring friend to MANY, our best helper, and is full of teenage humor.

Alexis Li "Lexi"--14

Meet the friendliest girl on the planet! Blind from birth, Lexi amazes all of us with her braille skills, determination, talents, but mosly by the way she spends her days SMILING. She is an angel in every way. We are thrilled to have our darling daughter home six years from China!!

Sophia Breanne "Sophi"--10

Her eyes called out to us from half-way around the world. Little Sophi is growing up and we would do anything to freeze her in time! She's beautiful, smart, and coy and can do amazing things with her toes! She has inspired people all around the world and we can't believe she is ours. Sophi = perfection.

Calais Rose "Cali"--18

Charming Cali joined our family in December of 2012. This girl is beautiful both inside and out. Born with spina bifida, Cali is confined to a wheelchair, but that does not keep her from enjoying life to the fullest. She is smart, opinionated, strong, and lovely in every way. She is a light in our family and a magnet for handsome young men!

Conner Allen-- 18

Meet our newest addition! Home three years from China, Conner makes us wonder what we ever did without him. Blind from birth, he will blow you away with his incredible talent on the piano. He is sweet, witty, girl-crazy, kind and finally, OURS! We love you, Conner!

The Dog

Baxter-- 1 year

She begged and pleaded and wrote letter after letter telling us why she NEEDED a dog, and Sophi finally got her wish! Meet Baxter, the cutest mini-audssiedoodle on the planet.